Destined
by Dark-Moon-Dancer
Summary: ItaSaku Non-Massacre AU. He vowed to protect her before she was born. Itachi always keeps his promises, but what if he didn't know who she was? Fate intervenes and personalities clash.
1. First Encounter

Dear readers,

This is my first story here so please be nice in your reviews. I do understand criticism but hope you put good feedback in as well.

I rated M because there will be violence in some chapters and possibly a lemon.

I do not own Naruto.

Thanks for reading.

* * *

Itachi was heading back to the Uchiha compound, for a five year old he was very self-sufficient. He had been practicing outside the compound so no one would see the high level jitsu he had been practicing. In truth he could perform them adequately for a week but he knew nothing but perfection would satisfy his father. Although, nothing really seemed to satisfy his father when it came to training. Even now Itachi could picture the glare his father would have given him had he known that Itachi had stopped his training early. Itachi; however, was satisfied that his training had gone well as he had not made a single mistake and cut the time it took to preform the jitsu in half.

Itachi rationalized this was good enough and now he headed home where he was needed by his mother even though she never said it. In general he loved being near the calm composed woman whenever he got the chance, but right now it was even more import. Mikoto was very, very pregnant and Shuiri had told Itachi that 'she could pop at anytime'. Itachi felt he needed to be there just in case something happened to his beloved mother, he needed to protect her and he knew that once his baby brother came his alone time with his mother would be cut in half if not more. His father had started shooing him away from his mother a year ago and now every moment he got with just her was precious.

And so he left the training grounds with haste, he had trained for three hours and felt that anything could happen in that time frame. In his rush, Itachi did not pay attention as he rounded a wooden fence corner and abruptly fell back when he crashed into something warm, big, and soft.

"Whoa, are you alright kid?"

Itachi looked up into the greenest eyes he had ever seen before. The face of the woman was unfamiliar, which didn't really surprise him, as she was obviously a civilian if her clothes were any indication. She had long blonde hair, a friendly face, was surprisingly pregnant and seemed to have been too hungry to go home and eat her snack, as she had already opened the container of sweets and looked to be about half way through them.

Itachi stood and bowed fluidly, "I am fine. I apologize for running into you ma'am; I was not paying attention to my surroundings. You have my word I will not let it happen again."

The woman lifted an eyebrow, "No harm done, I have some extra padding right now so I didn't really feel it. Where were you running off to anyway?"

Her question reminded Itachi of his original rush and he quickly explained, "I was on my way home, there are responsibilities that I must see to immediately."

If possible her eyebrow went higher, "responsibilities? You can't be more than six. You should slow down and play, you don't want to grow up too fast."

This time it was Itachi's eye that lifted and his mouth dropped into a deep frown, "I do not have time to waste playing."

"Uchihas, always think they know everything," muttering to herself the woman stared at the intense little boy in front of her.

His eyes narrowed and his face darkened, "how did you know I was a Uchiha?"

Throwing back her head the woman laughed, "How could I not know you were a Uchiha? Not only are you wearing the Uchiha crest on your back, but you also look of one. Not to mention my husband is a chunin so I've had to deal with your clan when he is partnered with one of them." She said the word 'deal' as if it was one of the hardest things in life she had had to endure. And while Itachi could understand that, he had the pride of his family and quickly opened his mouth to defend them. But before he could say anything the woman paled, gasping she doubled over in pain.

Itachi's eyes widened, "you aren't going to 'pop' are you?" He didn't know what he would do if she did, as he had never seen anyone 'pop' and did not know what the proper etiquette was for someone popping.

The woman still hunched over lifted her blonde head, "no…not yet. My son is just trying to prove he will be a shinobi like his father when he is born. Either that or he will be a champion wrestler, his kicks are already very strong." She sighed and slowly lowered herself to the ground using the fence as her backrest as well as for shade. Rubbing her stomach she continued, "I have no doubt that he will break hearts no matter what he does. His father is just like that too."

Curious, Itachi tilted his head and voiced the question he had planned to ask his mother if he hadn't gotten shooed away by his father, "how do you know it will be a boy?"

Beginning to eat her sweets once again the woman smiled at the cute little boy in front of her, "the doctor told me." Patting the ground next to her the woman explained about the different ways a doctor could tell what the sex of a baby was. When she finished Itachi was sitting next to her with a frown once again on his little face, "there is a chance for error. The baby could be a girl."

"True but the actual chance of error is small enough that I believe them. Plus, I know it's a boy…mother's instinct and all that."

She looked down at the rest of her sweets knowing that she shouldn't eat them all, but not feeling the urge to restrain herself, "hey…since I taught you something, I need a favor."

Itachi sat a little straighter and solemnly answered, "what is it? If I can be of service, I will do my best."

"_This kid is a hoot!"_

Laughing on the inside she held up a dango stick, "save me from myself. I don't want my little Sakuya to be addicted to sweets before he is even born."

Itachi eyed the candy, while it was true he had never had dango before he thought it smelled nice and if he didn't like it he could always find a way out of eating it. He reached for it even as his father's words ran through his head '_it could be poisoned!' _Itachi looked up at the beautiful green-eyed lady still smiling at him. "_No, she would not poison me."_ He took the stick and nibbled a little, then quickly gobbled the rest. "_Its delicious", _he thought.

The woman's smile grew, "I thought you would like it. Well I must be off little Uchiha, I still have lots to do today and there isn't a lot of day left to do it in." she carefully climbed to her feet and continued to walk on her way.

Itachi starred after her. Today had seen many of Itachi's firsts; first time trying dango, first time all his new jitsu went right, and last but not least Itachi's first love. As Itachi watched the woman round the corner he silently vowed to find her son later, he would protect him for her. He had forgotten to ask her name but that was okay, he was sure there would be a resemblance and he also knew what the boy's name was going to be "Sakuya."


	2. Curiosity

Naruto does not belong to me.

I hope you enjoy and thanks for reading.

* * *

Mikoto had always had misgivings about the Uchiha plan. For one thing, they would be going against their own village, people they had fought with and bled for. Now they were supposed to turn around and demand blood for that? No, to Mikoto this power trip did nothing but prove the Uchiha clan was not fit to lead the village.

She had tried many times to talk to Fugaku, pleaded that this was not the way and he did not have to follow what those smelly old men said. Fugaku was the leader of the clan not them. But her pleas fell on deaf ears as Fugaku was already completely immersed in their thralls.

Fugaku had not been the first choice of clan leader, being born as the second son he had mostly been ignored. It was during those years that Mikoto had met him and fallen in love. He had such easy charm: a gentle if not hidden smile, the way he laughed at he climbed a sakura tree to rain down its blossoms upon her head loudly declaring she looked like a princess.

Then his brother had died and the elders realized they had given Fugaku to much freedom. He was immediately called to the council for an 'isolation period' where they groomed, _"more like brain washed," _himto become the man he was now: paranoid, severe, and stubborn.

Still he was her husband and she had stuck with him through thick and thin, just as she promised all those years ago. Even when her baby, Itachi had almost literally been ripped from her grasp so that he would understand how a proper Uchiha behaved without her 'coddling'.

She sat and watched as Fugaku used their son to gain favor with the elders; pushing him so hard Mikoto visibly saw the stress the boy suffered. The fact that he was a prodigy everyone but her took for granted. If they were not careful this child would miss the important things in life.

She tried, she would steal him away and teach him things, lessons he aught to know. Skipping rocks, jumping in puddles, and how to think for himself. Itachi was an intelligent child and she wanted him to know how to make choices on his own.

But she had failed him as a mother. He was her baby and she had just sat by as Fugaku and the elders told him about the 'plan'. She saw her happy, inquisitive son wilt into what the clan wanted him to be: a machine. At ten years old he was breaking records and advancing fast, but he didn't seem to care about anything anymore.

She feared they had broken him; now the elders and Fugaku wanted her to sit by as they broke her second child, Sasuke was only five! Itachi almost never voiced his thoughts or feelings anymore, she couldn't endure it if Sasuke went cold too.

This was how Itachi found his mother; sipping tea with a sad faraway look on her face."Mother, I would like to pick Sasuke up from the academy today. I have already finished my duties and Sasuke asked me to come". Mikoto's drawn appearance had cleared at her son's words; '_he still shows affection towards Sasuke'._

The smile that blossomed on Mikoto's face was one of pure joy, "Of course, my son. If you have already promised I insist that you go. And since you have already finished your duties please play outside with Sasuke a little while; he misses you when you are away."

With a stiff bow the boy headed off.

Mikoto looked down at her tea again still smiling, '_maybe it will turn out okay after all'. _Her smile suddenly turned cold, '_I will protect my children'._ With this last thought Mikoto stood from the table and began to pace. Fugaku wouldn't listen and he was her husband as well as the father of her children. It was time to explore other options.

* * *

Itachi walked with purpose as he exited the clan gates and did not increase his pace until he was firmly out of sight. It was true that he had promised to pick Sasuke up but he also had an anterior motive. _That_ boy should also be in the academy by now as he and Sasuke were conceived around the same time. Itachi wanted to get a first look at his new charge.

In his excitement Itachi took to the rooftops; it was faster and he didn't want to miss the academy letting out before he got there.

When he landed in front of the academy building he was pleased to see that it was clear of children, he wasn't late. He heard the bell in the tower chime and glanced its way. A small almost invisible smile appeared; of course there were no children playing he was an hour early.

Deciding to wait Itachi found a tree with a thick trunk, lots of braches and wide leaves. Leaning his shoulders against the trunk as well has his leg Itachi took in his surroundings. From his shade he could see the doors to the academy very well and would therefore have no trouble observing the children when they were let out.

Closing his eyes his mind began to wander, he refused to think of clan duties so he tried to clear his mind of all thoughts. Every thought that popped into his head eventually came back to the clan, at times he felt as if he would drown under all the thoughts he had. Wherever he went people knew his name as the clan heir, his own cousins giving him expectant looks. His father would drill him at all hours while his mother looked on with a blank yet sad expression. As a result of all this pressure Itachi had developed huge anxieties. He was a genius and the clan heir, he was not allowed to be inquisitive because he should already understand everything and have at least two plans of action at all times. He shied away from speaking if he wasn't sure what the correct answer was, and asking for help was simply impossible. If he had a question he would look for the answer alone, spending hours researching alone so that he could keep his head above the sea of judging eyes that was his village.

A small tug on the bottom of his shirt informed Itachi that not only had he fallen asleep but he had also allowed someone to sneak up on him. Cracking his eye open just enough to see out of but still feigning sleep Itachi peered at the person who was stealthy enough to sneak up on him and wake him from his nightmare.

The small upturned face smiled at him not at all convinced, "I know you're awake! I saw your eyelashes flutter." Seeing that a) there was no danger and b) it was a little girl Itachi 'woke' from his sleep and turned to stare at the girl.

She looked like a sprite with her big emerald eyes and her long pink hair that seemed almost to long for her small body. A white sundress completed her summer like wild appearance and her smile seemed to be one of pure mischief.

"What are you doing outside the academy? Don't you know we don't get out for another half an hour?"

Cocking his eyebrow he asked his own question, "If the academy does not let out for another half an hour what are you doing outside of your class already?"

She blinked, "Oh, we had a test today and Iruka sensei told me and Shikamaru as a reward for finishing early and getting the highest scores on our last test we could leave early."

"Shikamaru and I," he automatically corrected. The sprite's smile dropped immediately and her nose curled as if she smelt something very bad, "Shikamaru and I," she quoted it a snooty rendition of his voice. "Who do you think you are, my mother? You know what I mean either way so why does it matter how I say it?"

Properly baited, Itachi's natural frown deepened, "because there is a correct and incorrect way of speaking. I was just trying to help you by teaching you the correct way so that later you would not encounter any problems. And it is unbecoming to act so immature about being corrected."

The little girl's lip twitched although it was impossible to tell whether it was from anger or amusement, "immature, I'm a kid that's the way I am. And who says unbecoming." She looked at him up and down, "you appear to be a kid too but you act like a grandpa. I'm guessing you were born thirty-five and get more middle aged every year."

Itachi flushed at the girl's reproachful words, no one spoke to him this way, not the clan and certainly not the villagers; she was at least five years younger than him! His eyes narrowed and his nostrils flared, "like I said I was just trying to help and I don't appreciate your sarcasm. I shutter to think what your parents are like if this is how you behave towards someone you don't know."

He watched with satisfaction as her eyes widened with the realization that she had been appallingly rude. Confident he had the last word Itachi began to turn away, he saw the girl opening her mouth and he felt gleeful as he was sure he was about to hear an apology but then he heard someone calling, "…ura," then louder, "Sakura!"

Both children turned towards the academy doors to see Iruka sensei waving frantically, the little girl immediately turned and ran towards her teacher. Itachi watched as upon reaching him the girl, Sakura was herded back inside the academy.

A few minutes past and Itachi went back to leaning against the tree, this time he could not rest as the class that was a grade ahead of his brother's let out early. He recognized some of the children as Uchihas and other clans; turning away he hoped that they would leave him alone.

And leave him alone they did, no one bothered the Uchiha clan heir without a very, very good reason and they certainly didn't have one. Instead they focused one the issue that had been annoying the entire class up for the last hour. Why had that pink haired brat gotten out of class before them? They were in the class ahead of hers and by right should have been let out first. But no, she had to go and be an overachiever and show them all up. She wasn't even from a clan; she was a nobody with stupid hair!

The children from the clans were still silently fuming when Sakura appeared again only this time with something that seemed to break their last straw.

"Thank you again for staying after class last time to help clean up," Iruka smiled at the girl and patted her back. "It was no trouble at all. It was raining and my mommy told me she would be late. Thanks for the gift though!" the girl replied while smiling up at the larger man.

Iruka just patted her head and turned to go back inside to watch the remainder of his class finish their test and clean up before heading home. Without knowing that the small gift from her teacher was like a trigger to her upper classmates Sakura ran down the steps with a bounce in her steps. So preoccupied with trying to find the older boy whom she had been verbally sparing with, Sakura didn't notice she was surrounded until it was too late.

There were at least ten children blocking out all of her escape roots, she couldn't get a good count because they had begun to shove her as soon as they had her encircled.

"What's wrong Haruno? Is that box to heavy for you, its okay just give it to us," one voice rang out. As she shook her head another voice joined in, "Even though her forehead is so large her brain must be very small. She took that as a question." It went down hill from there, the insults to her person started to branch off to her family members, some wondering if her mother had slept with a monkey because no human would pass on such a large forehead. The hands that had previously pushed also became rougher, smacking and clawing not even caring when Sakura started to bleed.

Itachi, who had closed his eyes to meditate, opened them once more when he heard Sakura's cry of distress. Seeing the young girl surrounded by the older children upset Itachi, some of those children were from his own clan and he knew they had not been raised to act like this.

He felt his fists ball up as he saw the girl was bleeding. Stalking up to the group he quietly demanded, "What do you think you are doing?" The children turned to him immediately, having forgotten that THE Uchiha heir was even at the academy today. The children from the other clans didn't even try to explain themselves, after they saw who had come to Sakura's aid they ran.

The Uchiha children knew it would be no use. They would get a lecture from him and their parents later and they didn't want to add to the lecture. "You are Uchihas, and what I have just witnessed is disgraceful. Not only were you attacking a younger classmate but Ganging up on her as well. Return to the compound, I will visit your families tonight," with this last promise the children slowly turned and headed home dreading the night ahead of them.

"I fine. I didn't need your help," Sakura said as soon as they left. Itachi looked down at the picture she made; dirt covering her white dress, hair going every direction, blood flowing from her cut lip, and tear tracks running down her cheeks. After evaluating her condition he gave a disgusted snort and looked up at the blue sky as if asking a divine being to appear and explain to her how unfine she looked.

"Really, I was. I could have taken them by myself."

"It did not look like you were fine to me."

A snort, "Then I guess Uchiha eyesight isn't as good as rumored. Better get your eyes checked Uchiha heir." Itachi gave another disgusted snort, '_so even though she knows who I am, she still deems it appropriate to speak to me like that?'_

He sighed, "I don't suppose I would get a thank you from a barbarian such as yourself."

Sakura snorted, "Barbarian? I'm the cutest thing anyone ever saw ever unlike you. Does it upset you that Sasuke-kun is prettier?" Refusing the bait this time Itachi made his way back to his tree and leaned up against it for a third time.

A few minutes passed until Itachi once again felt a tug on his sleeve, exasperated he turned toward the tug intending to tell the girl she was very unwelcomed when he noticed what she wanted. Her face was a little flushed with one hand still clenched around the bottom of his shirt, the other extending the box that had caused all the trouble. Not quite looking at him she spoke, "You can have some if you want," inside the box were four sticks of dango.

Itachi, not able to turn up the chance at eating his favorite sweet just took a stick and popped it into his mouth. "Don't think this is because I'm grateful or anything. I just want you to save me from myself." The words were spoken easily enough, but Itachi froze at them. '_It can't be…he was a boy."_

Grasping for any sort of alternative Itachi abruptly asked, "are there any blondes in your class? With Green eyes? A little boy." Sakura thought for a moment, "Naruto is the only boy in our class who has blonde hair, but his eyes are blue."

"What about a boy named Sakuya?" Itachi pressed. "None. But there used to be a Sakuya, he didn't like being a ninja so he stopped." Itachi relaxed, it wasn't her and yet at the same time he felt disappointed he would now probably never meet _her_ son.

Itachi took a second dango stick still thinking about the past, it didn't register to him when Sakura waved at someone behind his back or her words, "oh, there's my mommy. Bye!" Itachi nodded absently. Sakura's brows came down as she realized the boy was tuning her out, viscously she grabbed his shirt again and when he turned to her she all but shouted, "thanks for your help today even if I didn't need it. Also, Sasuke-kun is still cuter!" and then she ran off.

Itachi was so shocked he didn't turn around to see where she went until she had already turned the corner. _'Oh well, as long as its not her I have to protect I guess it's okay."_

Meanwhile, Sakura ran up to her mother and grabbed her hand, "look what Iruka sensei gave me! Do you want one mama?" A smile tugged at the woman's mouth as she stared down at her daughter's appearance, "sure, I love dango. How was your day Sakura?" Her long hair got caught in a nearby branch and she gently tugged it loose while trying not to damage the tree. She then pushed her hair over her shoulder; the light seemed to reflect off it as it cascaded down her back. "I wish my hair was blonde like yours mommy!" The green-eyed woman just smiled.

* * *

I would like to thank you all for reading my story and a special thank you to those of you that reviewed. It made me really excited to write this chapter.

I hope to get more nice reviews.

Thanks guys!


	3. Weight of the World

Author's notes:

1) Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto or the characters contained therein, they belong to Masashi Kishimoto and I gain no benefit other than getting my own thoughts out of my head.

2) You people who read my story are all awesome! I love the reviews and encourage more. I to get a lot better at writing so if you see something that I could improve on please let me know.

3) Thanks so much for reading this story it really means a lot to me.

* * *

Sakura ran out of her house towards the training grounds as fast as she could, tears streaming down her face. She wasn't running very fast considering she was a ninja and that knowledge just made her cry harder.

Nobody seemed to understand that she was trying her best. Sure, at first her attention was split between her lessons and paying attention to Sasuke (more like 80% to 40% in Sasuke's favor). But that didn't mean she didn't want to be a Kunoichi.

Entering the training grounds she ran to the trees, she didn't want anyone to find her so she ran deep into the trees finally finding one that she could sit under and cry with her back to the rest of the village.

Why didn't they understand she realized her mistakes, she wanted to set them right, hadn't she proven that in the chunin exams in some small way? Who saved Sasuke from Orochimaru when Naruto got knocked out? She had stood in front of both her teammates to protect them. She had even _cut _her own _hair_ just to keep the two of them safe. And it worked…mostly. Sasuke had already been bitten by that time so there was nothing she could have done about that. And sure, she was losing the battle when Itachi had stepped in. _But _if she hadn't been there in the first place Naruto would probably have died and she didn't even want to _think_ what had been planned for Sasuke.

The wind blew through the trees; Sakura pulled her knees to her chest and wrapped her arms around them to keep warm. It didn't seem to help, Sakura felt as if she was cold from the inside out. She had felt numb since Kakashi Sensei's visit and the cold just kept seeping in.

* * *

"Kakashi Sensei what are you doing here?" Wonder filled Sakura's voice as she stared at her Sensei. He was standing in her family's living room. He seemed awkward as he stood in the middle of the room, shifting his feet slightly from side to side.

"Ah, Sakura what are you doing here?"

At this Sakura smiled, "I live here silly! But what about you, if you came to see my parents they just went out…actually I bet they were the ones who let you in?" There was a question in her voice as she stood in the doorway.

Kakashi seemed to grow remarkably tall as he pulled himself out of his usual slouch, the room seemed to shrink around him. "Actually I came to see you Sakura. Would you like to sit down?"

Though it had been phrased as a question the tone in the way Kakashi had said it let Sakura knew it was anything but a question. This was serious, and from the way her sensei was standing Sakura got the feeling she wasn't going to like it.

She began what seemed to be a long trek to the couch. With every step Kakashi seemed to grow, it was odd, she had never really been scared of Kakashi before but the way he was acting made her hair stand on end. Finally after what seemed like ages she made it to the couch and gratefully sat down. Her comfort only lasted a moment as she realized now Kakashi was towering over her.

As if reading her mind Kakashi turned away from her and began pacing in front of the couch. Abruptly Kakashi stopped walking, facing the window and giving Sakura his back. "The Uchiha clan has asked that I take Sasuke out for a little one on one training."

Sakura blinked, "Oh, I guess Naruto and I are on our own for a little while. Who are we train-" Kakashi cut her off mid question, "Naruto will be leaving the village as well. Jiraiya will be taking over his training." A heavy silence followed as Sakura waited to know who was taking over her training.

Sakura felt her eyes widen with realization, "Sensei, who is going to train me?" The earnest tone of her voice almost got to Kakashi but he was made of sterner stuff and it was time to tell Sakura what he had decided, after all he was her sensei and he wanted what was best for her. "No one. I haven't asked anyone to take over your training."

Sakura kept staring at his back willing him to turn around and tell her it was all a joke, that he would take her with them and that he hadn't just threw her away. "This is what is best for you. Tell me Sakura why did you want to become a ninja?" His back was still to Sakura so he didn't see her bow her head as she tried not to cry. She refused to cry in front of him and prove to him she was weak, but her attempt to regain her composure before answering him must have taken too long.

"See, you can't answer me. I know that Sasuke is very important to you but right now I think you should work on what's best for you. If you continue to chase after Sasuke and become a ninja with just that resolve you won't make it." He took a deep breath, "you should turn in your headband. I know it may seem hard right now but I think you will do fine as a civilian like your mother. You can marry into a ninja family and still be safe."

'_Did he always see me as useless?'_ Her head was still bowed but Sakura felt her tears dry as rage set in. He had been the one to teach her you didn't abandon your teammates, to do so would make you lower than trash. Didn't he realize that he had basically _told_ Sakura that he was abandoning her, making _him_ lower than trash? She felt herself go cold and said nothing, waiting to see how much more her sensei would humiliate her.

Kakashi finally turned around, "You may hate me right now but I think that with time you will understand and forgive me for telling you what you need to know. The boys and I will leave tomorrow afternoon, I hope you will come send us off with a smile on your face."

On the couch Sakura began shaking a little, '_Sure, and while I'm at it I'll wave a hankie for you all and promise to keep the house clean and have a warm hot meal ready for your return—NOT. Take your false concern and stay the hell away from me.' _She wanted to say it, but she felt if she opened her mouth she would be sick. She took a few calming breaths from her nose and finally lifted her head. Kakashi almost took a step back; it was amazing he didn't burst into flames from her heated gaze.

Sakura calmly stood, "Get. Out." That's all, two simple words but there was so much emotion behind them that Kakashi realized he had made a mistake somewhere. He knew she would be upset but he thought she would see what he was trying to do for her. He scratched his head, maybe he should have said it in a nicer way, she was a girl after all and he didn't really know how to deal with girls.

He took a step toward her; maybe give her a hug if that was what she needed. Sakura wasn't having it though she lifted her surprisingly steady arm and pointed. There was nothing to say, he had said what he thought and she had decided she wouldn't listen to what wannabe trash said.

Realizing he wouldn't get through to her today, Kakashi turned slowly and headed out the door, '_I'll make it up to her when I return.' _ Sakura sank back onto the couch and started to cry after the door shut, _'This day can't get any worse.'_

* * *

She was still sitting frozen on the couch when her parents walked through the door, sitting so still that at first they didn't notice her. When they did take notice of their pink headed child they were immediately distressed. Her mother literally ran to her side and pulled the stiff girl into her arms.

"Baby what's wrong? Why are you crying?" Instead of calming Sakura, the love her mother showed seemed to break her even more, her silent tears that had been streaming down her face were replaced by sobs that shook her entire body.

Her father stood stunned for a moment before he too joined his girls on the couch. Not sure how to support her when he didn't know what was wrong he hesitated. Looking at his wife for a moment to see what she wanted him to do, but she had eyes only for her blossom at the moment. Still feeling a little lost he finally put a hand on his daughter's shoulder.

She turned almost immediately and jumped into his arms, and without any of the previous hesitation he wrapped her up in his strong arms. Having her dad hold her was a favorite pastime for Sakura because even though he wasn't very tall he had strong wide shoulders that put her at ease. Yes, she loved her dad even though he was gone on missions a lot; so she stayed there feeling a little safer and cried out her tears.

It was well afternoon when Sakura finally calmed down enough to speak without sobbing or hiccups getting in the way. Her parents listened patiently as she told them what had happened with Kakashi sensei. When she finished they sat in silence waiting for their daughter to tell them what she planned to do next.

"I can't give up now, I just started to understand what I want." Her parents glanced at each other above her head.

Her dad decided to go first, "Are you sure this is what you want?" He knew that this had been a dream of hers since she was little, but somewhere along the way she seemed to have lost her original goal. Kizashi looked at his daughter in what seemed to be the first time in years. She seemed so little. When she was young he had held her close and played with her. When she joined the academy he had patted her on the head and said he was proud. But was he?

He had never really thought about it until this moment but hadn't he become a ninja to protect his family? If Sakura walked away from the ninja lifestyle right now not only would she be his little girl again (not that she would ever stop), but she would be safe. She may be feel upset for a short time but once she got used to civilian life he could see to it that she was happy and he got to be her larger than life daddy again. He missed the times when she used to look to him for everything and thought he was the strongest ninja around.

"Your mother and I love you no matter what. If you don't feel like you want to continue you don't have too." Mebuki looked at her husband suspiciously; while it sounded like he had Sakura's best interest at heart she had a feeling that this went deeper. All Sakura heard was '_It's okay to give up because your mother and I didn't have faith in you to begin with.' _Had they just been letting her 'play' ninja until she understood she was bad at it? They hadn't said a word about her becoming a ninja and now it seemed that was because she could never do it.

For a second time that day Sakura slowly lifted her head and looked at a man she had trusted as if she had never seen him before. He had been smiling down at her until he saw the look on her face. Now he frowned a little as he realized he had somehow said something wrong but he didn't know what.

Sakura couldn't look back at her mother, afraid of what she might see and instead stood up from the couch and her family's embrace. "Do you think that just because one lazy man told me to quit that I would?" The anger on her face shocked her father, that wasn't what he had been trying to say at all! The accusation hung in the air; Kizashi didn't know what to say because he didn't know how she got that from what he had said. Mebuki refused to fix the situation that her husband had made because of his own selfish wish to coddle her daughter.

Sakura's eyes went from angry to sad in moments, lips quivering she whispered, "Did you ever believe in me?" And then she was running, she didn't look back to see her mother who had lifted a hand to show support or her father who jumped up to follow her.

"Don't." The steel voice stopped Kizashi from chasing his daughter. He turned back to his wife on the couch.

"Mebuki, love, what if she gets hurt?" With the grace of the lady she was Mebuki stood from the couch, and then delivered a glare that was as good as any shinobis while facing down an opponent "With that talk it's no wonder Sakura didn't understand what you were trying to say." With that said she turned and headed into the kitchen tossing out, "you're sleeping on the couch tonight."

Kizashi shook his head, now they were both mad at him? Women by far were the most frightening opponents he had ever had to face.

* * *

And so Sakura sat hunched over beneath her tree thinking of how her entire life was about to change. Her Sensei didn't think she had it in her to become a kunoichi; her parents seemed to think that it had been a whim of hers and had decided to heed it. So who was left? Who would believe in her if the closest people around in her didn't think she could do it. Were they right?

Her tears were gone, she had nothing left to cry and that combined with her sobbing and hiccupping made her try to catch her breath from her run. It didn't seemed to be working, she couldn't regulate her breathing at all; in fact her heartbeat seemed to go crazy when she tried.

It was then she felt a hand settle on her back, "You need to calm down or else you will be sick." If she could have stiffed she would have, of all people who could have found her in this state Itachi was ranked in her top five that she would have died rather than let them see her like this.

"G-g-g-go aw-ay,' she stuttered through her hiccups. But instead of following her wishes Itachi settled down next to her. He pulled out a bottle of water and a towel. After wetting the towel and setting it on his lap, Itachi pushed Sakura's shoulders making her lie down. Quickly he put the damp towel over her eyes. "Be calm, unless someone has died there is no need for this drama. Take a deep breath and hold it until I tell you to release it."

The fact that Sakura didn't really fight Itachi or comment snidely told Itachi something about her mental state. Since the first moment he met her she always had something to say to him. She was intelligent and so he had no problem having conversations with her, it was only when she said something about him being wrong and/or Sasuke being prettier that he would remember her how young and foolish she truly was. Not that he didn't think his baby brother wasn't good looking, but she seemed to say it to exasperate him and it usually worked on some level. But right now he would take that if it meant she would calm down.

He waited a few moments then told her she could exhale; she did and seemed calmer after. He took her through a few more breathing exercises just to be safe, all the while Sakura lay on the ground with a wet towel over her eyes. When he finished he didn't say anything, just sat there and watched her…maybe she had gone to sleep?

After a few minutes of silence Sakura started talking, telling her story for the second time that day (man she just needed to write it down so she didn't have to waste the words anymore, she could just hand people the scroll). Itachi being who he was didn't interrupt or make any sounds of pity, but she knew he was listening.

When she finished silence rang out in the clearing, she waited for him to say something but she couldn't even hear him breathing. Finally she took the towel from her eyes and slowly sat up to look at him. Staring at him made no difference, Itachi just stared back at her.

"Well?"

"Well, what?" he said in a calm bored voice.

She gestured impatiently, "What do you think I should do? Do you think they are right, do I not cut it?"

Tilting his head he considered her, "What I believe makes no difference, this is your choice. If you go through life letting someone else tell you what to do, you are nothing but a puppet."

"Yeah, cause you don't have others telling you what to do as the clan heir." She sneered, although she could see his point it didn't change the irony of what he had just said.

"I've always taken it was advice more than them telling me what to do. I make my own decisions."

Glancing down, she noticed that at some point she had started picking at the grass and now there was a small hole in the foliage. It was true, she was letting others influence what she wanted. When she left her house she had been determined to prove them wrong but as she thought about it more and more she wondered if she should listen to what they were saying. She had given the power to them, even Itachi, she wanted him to tell her the answer even though he was someone she didn't really get along with most the time.

Suddenly she stood, "I need to talk with Gai Sensei."

Itachi watched as she walked away with a new spring in her step, shaking his head he stood, scanning the area for the signature he had been following when he saw Sakura. It was time to end the 'hide-and-seek' training Shisui had started.

* * *

I want to apologize for the delay in getting chapter 3 up, school started again and I have a lot going on right now.

The story is starting to get to the point/time frame I want, I think chapter 4 will be the last major time skip but don't quote me on that. The story will start to get a little violent from this point, just a warning. Not very violent but less cutesy, I want some action.

As always, thanks for reading!

R&R and all that good stuff.


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